Lando Norris admits McLaren F1 car fears

Norris at the Circuit of the Americas — Photo: © IMAGO

Lando Norris

Lando Norris admits McLaren car fears

Lando Norris won the 2025 drivers' championship

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Monday 12 January 2026 09:12

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F1 champion Lando Norris has revealed fears that he had over his McLaren car.

The Brit managed to claim championship success over team-mate Oscar Piastri and four-time champion Max Verstappen at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, finishing third in the race to claim the championship by two points.

It followed a fierce three-way championship battle between the trio which had taken various twists and turns throughout the year.

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But after a double disqualification for McLaren at the Las Vegas GP while Verstappen won the race, everything came down to the final event of the season in Abu Dhabi.

And Norris has now revealed quite how scary that was, fearing that something would happen to his super reliable McLaren machinery that would leave him unable to properly challenge for the title.

"It felt like a normal race, a truly normal race," Norris reflected on the decisive Abu Dhabi GP in a new video on his YouTube channel.

"It was just another day at the office. But with two laps to go, time starts to slow down a bit. You start thinking about every little screw, every bolt, every wire. I imagine how everything in my car works.

"At that moment, you think, 'Damn, what could go wrong, because everything is going well.' Your mind starts to dwell on those little things."

Will Norris win more championships?

Norris claimed seven race wins in total throughout last year, and was a worthy winner of the title.

But it remains to be seen whether he or Piastri will be able to challenge for the title again in 2026, with McLaren potentially set to find it tougher going.

They were the dominant outfit in 2025, claiming 14 of 24 grand prix victories and wrapping up the constructors' title as early as October.

But wholesale regulation changes sweeping into the sport in 2026 could see a complete shake up of the competitive order, with some suggesting that McLaren's dominance could have been short lived.

And that's because the rumours are that Mercedes are best placed to master the regulations, while Ferrari, Aston Martin and Red Bull are also all hoping to challenge for race victories.

Norris may be forced to confront a new reality in 2026, despite being the reigning champion.

F1 McLaren Lando Norris